Mental Health Treatment: Exploring Access and Barriers in Affordable Care

The NYS Community Schools Thruway Coalition is partnering with the NYS Community Health Access to Addiction and Mental Healthcare Project (CHAMP), to explore health insurance barriers in access to mental health and substance use disorder services for students and their families.

A little about CHAMP:

CHAMP is the New York State independent health insurance ombudsman program for substance use disorder and mental health care. They educate and assist New Yorkers in accessing treatment and insurance coverage for substance use and mental health treatment. Specifically CHAMP can help families to:

·  Understand what mental health and substance use disorder benefits are covered by your insurance and how to access them

·  Find mental health and substance use disorder providers

·  Assist you with obtaining needed approvals (such as prior authorization, additional services, and out-of-network services)

·  Appeal denials of mental health and substance use disorder services and medications

·  Provide referrals

·  Conduct education and outreach sessions for consumers, health advocates, and treatment providers

·  Identify and address parity and other legal violations

About the Presenters:

Ryan Johnson is the NYS Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare’s CHAMP Project Specialist, the statewide health insurance ombudsman program for substance use disorder and mental health care, where he provides program outreach and education throughout New York, along with training and technical assistance to the partner organizations that have direct contact with care recipients and families seeking assistance. He also offers policy leadership designed to address reforms clearly necessary based on the data collected and the trends seen in the program.

Ryan previously worked for the NYS Office of Mental Health, overseeing school-based mental health initiatives and other cross-systems collaborative projects. Prior to that, he was the Associate Director of the NYS Kinship Navigator program and Chair of the statewide Kincare Coalition.

Dr. Hennessey Lustica is the Community Schools Mental Health Director for the Seneca Falls Central School District, Assistant Professor in the Counseling  & Human Development Department in the Warner School of Education at the University of Rochester, and Vice President for Counselor Educators at the New York State School Counselor Association (NYSSCA). She has 20 years of experience as a school counselor and mental health counselor,  partnering with local, regional, and national efforts to develop leading theory and practice around supporting kids and families in rural settings. Dr. Lustica is steadfast in her contribution to research within the counseling field. She has presented at over 40 state, regional, and national conferences and has authored numerous works on best-practice school counseling.